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| From Yahoo! Sports |
The Buffalo Sabres have acquired defenseman Brandon Montour from the Anaheim Ducks in exchange for defenseman Brendan Guhle and a 2019 first round pick. The pick is from San Jose, which was acquired by Buffalo last year for Evander Kane.
With trade rumors swirling that Rasmus Ristolainen could get traded, get his replacement. Montour is a young, puck-moving defenseman, and is a righty shot, which teams are always lining up for. The price, a first round pick plus a prospect, is steep, but can pay off if Montour plays better than he has this year, playing nearly 23 minutes a game on a terrible Ducks team.
Montour, 24, has scored five goals with 20 assists for 25 points in 62 games, while averaging 22:40 a game. Last year, his career season, he scored nine goals with 23 assists for 32 points in 80 games, and was a +16. In his career, all for the Ducks, Montour has scored 16 goals with 47 assists for 63 points in 169 games.
For the Ducks, they are rebuilders now, while they are in the midst of a terrible season. Montour is an RFA at the end of the season, and when they could get a good return for him, it is worth it to trade him. The first will likely be at the end of the first round, as it comes from the really good Sharks, and Guhle, a middle level prospect playing in the AHL.
Guhle, 21, has no points in two games for the Sabres this year. In parts of three seasons for them, Guhle has scored five points, all assists, in 23 games. He has scored five goals with 22 assists for 27 points in 50 games for the AHL\’s Rochester Americans this year.
CarterHud 